ECUADOR’s National Public Procurement Service (Sercop) has suspended a tender for detailed engineering studies of an extension to the Quito Metro following an investigation which discovered irregularities. The contract was scheduled to be awarded this month.
The $US 11.9m tender covered:
- design of the 5km extension from El Labrador to La Ofelia, including four new stations
- development of a technical profile for a future extension towards Calderón, and
- plans to enhance the city’s rail transit system to meet growing demand.
Quito Metro launched the contracting process in July, with the award initially planned for October 8. According to municipal information, 10 companies participated in the market study phase, of which only five met the technical requirements. Two firms advanced to the evaluation stage: Técnicas y Proyectos and Promesa de Consorcio BPE, with Técnicas y Proyectos selected as the preferred bidder.
Bids were opened on September 15, and the evaluation phase was scheduled to continue until October 13. However, on that day, as the final results were published, the process was suspended.
According to Ecuadorian media outlet La Hora, Sercop suspended the tender because following receipt of a formal complaint, a review of the procedure identified irregularities.
No date has been announced to reactivate the process.
The existing 22km underground Line 1 runs from El Labrador south to Quitumbe with 15 stations.
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